Father
by bionic4ever
Summary: Could Rudy be Jaime's real father?
1. Chapter 1

**Father**

Chapter One

Rudy stared, wide-eyed and slack-jawed, at the file in front of him. Disbelief didn't begin to cover it. "Is this for real?" he asked Oscar slowly. With the recent re-structuring of the NSB, new information on Jaime's background had been culled from its long forgotten files and was now sitting before them in stark black and white.

"Hansen didn't write it," Oscar surmised, "so I suppose it's true."

"Does...Jaime know?"

"I doubt it, and I don't see that it would serve any purpose to tell her now." Oscar glanced at Rudy, then looked closer. He was far more affected by the news than he normally should have been. "Rudy...?" Oscar asked searchingly.

"Jaime's mother was almost two months pregnant when she married James Sommers," Rudy repeated slowly to himself. "My God..."

"It was a long term relationship, and they did get married. I don't see where there's a problem," Oscar stated, eying his friend curiously. Rudy was still staring at the file and his face had blanched to pale white. "What is it?" Oscar asked, getting worried now.

"Anne was...on a mission in Austria...while I was studying there. We met at a cafe for coffee – two Americans out of their element but making the best of it, you know..." Rudy did some quick calculations in his head and tried to figure out the right way to say what had taken him so thoroughly off guard. "We got to know each other fairly quickly – became very close..."

Oscar frowned. "What are you getting at?"

"It was two months before she married James. Oscar...I could be Jaime's father!"

--

Jaime had no idea what was taking place in Oscar's office; she had far greater things to be worried about. Her current mission had been going well. She had located and single-handedly destroyed a terror cell's base nestled on the edge of Death Valley. She'd already radioed news of her success to Oscar and was happily awaiting the chopper that would take her back to Los Angeles when she was grabbed from behind and overpowered by chloroform. She opened her eyes to find herself in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by white-hot sand and not much of anything else, just in time to see a man raise a gun from the back of a retreating jeep. She faded from consciousness before she felt the burning pain in her side or saw the second bullet rip through her leg.

Now that she was fully awake, Jaime knew she was in serious trouble. She had no idea where in the desert she actually was, and the sun reflecting off the sand was enough to nearly blind her. How long had she been unconscious? She had no provisions with her, not even a compass; she'd been on her way home! Her throat was parched and her head was spinning as she tried to struggle to her feet, only to find she wouldn't be going anywhere soon. It wasn't until she fell back onto the sand that she realized she was bleeding...

--

"Rudy, are you sure?" Oscar asked incredulously.

"Positive? No, but the dates match up. How can I tell Jaime? _Should _I tell her? I mean, what point is there in destroying her sense of who she is – who her family is? Still, I never had children of my own, and I'd like to know...if it really is true." Rudy buried his face in his hands as he tried to figure out what to do. "I have Jaime's DNA on file. I suppose I could run a test, compare it to mine. I wouldn't have to tell her...but I just don't know -"

The buzz of Oscar's intercom put a temporary end to the conversation. "Yes, Callahan?" he answered brusquely.

"Line Two, Mr. Goldman – it's urgent."

Oscar picked up the phone and his face quickly paled to match Rudy's. "What? When? What do you mean, you can't find her? _Find her!"_ Oscar slammed down the phone and sighed heavily. "We've got big problems," he told Rudy. "It's Jaime. I just spoke with her an hour ago, and she was waiting for the chopper to bring her back. It was due any minute. That was the pilot; she wasn't at the pick-up point or anywhere in the area. He's been circling for more than half an hour and can't find a trace of her. Rudy...Jaime's missing."

--


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Rudy had always considered Jaime to be a surrogate daughter, but now that the possibility existed that she might be so much more – and she was missing – he was overwhelmed. "What can we do?" he asked Oscar. "How can I help?"

"Did you ever convince her to let you put in that tracking implant?"

Rudy leaped to his feet. "Last month! It was a hard sell; she can be so stubborn sometimes. But yes – she's got one in her leg. I'll go print a current reading!"

"I'll be down in a few minutes," Oscar told him, picking up the phone. He mobilized every available unit, every person he could get his hands on to aid in the search and rescue. The area was vast, and (especially in mid-August's sweltering heat) extremely dangerous. If Jaime was alone out there, and if she'd been injured, she didn't have much time.

Rudy was back before Oscar could join him. "It's dead!" he said frantically. "Her chip – I can't get a reading!"

"Nothing at all? I thought you said it was new!"

"It was working fine just a couple of days ago. I checked it before you sent her on this mission. I just don't understand it."

"Well, keep trying!"

--

Jaime was fading in and out of darkness and wishing the sun would do some fading of its own. She rolled over onto her right side to keep the sand from burning her skin, then sat up, staring at the gaping hole in her leg. Even if she knew how to do the most simple repairs herself, the damage was massive. Wires were torn, whole circuits shredded – and sand had somehow filled the empty spaces. A small cry of frustration escaped her dry, ravaged throat as Jaime realized she could no longer move the leg at all.

Soon, she had to lie down and rest again; whether it was the heat or blood loss, she didn't know, but Jaime's head spun crazily and she'd never felt so thirsty...or so frightened.

--

Searchers immediately began combing the area by land and by air, but with more than 3000 square miles of desert to cover, it seemed almost futile. Jaime's datacom was found not far from where she was supposed to meet her chopper – destroyed and scattered in pieces across the sand. Every crew member was equipped with extra water and provisions because after any length of time in the 120-degree heat, Jaime was going to need it...if they could find her. Several medivacs were waiting at strategic points across the arid valley, ready to move in at a moment's notice and air conditioned buses were serving as relief stations/command centers for the teams.

It was all Oscar could do to keep Rudy from charging out the door and taking off for Death Valley to look for Jaime himself. "You can do more for her here," he pointed out, "especially if you can get that chip to work."

"I'll keep trying, Oscar, but it's not even giving a partial signal." Rudy flipped every lever, turned every dial and swore softly to himself. While Oscar paced back and forth between the phone banks and the radios, Rudy quietly drew a sample of his own blood and placed it in the centrifuge.

--

It was just after 2pm and the temperature was approaching 125 when Jaime opened her eyes again. The sun sizzling off the ground beside her made visible rays of heat that looked like..._snakes! _She tried to crawl away, but she was so weak and they seemed to be everywhere. Why did they have to be snakes, and not a water mirage so she could at least pretend to drink something?

Should she try to crawl for help, or maybe hop on her one good leg? She barely had the strength to sit up, much less stand, and there was no road in any direction for as far as she could see. Just sand...and the real or imaginary snakes. She had stopped bleeding, but Jaime could definitely feel the vicious effects of the bullet lodged in her side and the sand that had crept into that wound, too. She tried to remember some sort of first aid that might help, but every other thought that flooded her mind cried for _water. _ She had to find water – every cell in Jaime's body craved it, needed it desperately – but she could no longer hold her head up and soon everything once again faded to black.

--


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

""Rudy, how long can she last out there?" Oscar asked, unable to stop pacing.

"It depends. With her bionics, Jaime expends less energy, loses less water through sweating and thus needs less to stay hydrated. However, if she's injured – or God forbid, losing blood – she's in big trouble."

_"How long, Rudy?" _Oscar demanded impatiently.

"Not much longer." Rudy still could get no readings from Jaime's tracking chip, which should have been working no matter what sort of shape she was in. After what was at least his tenth attempt, he had to walk away and breathe for a minute, trying to calm down. In the meantime, the centrifuge had done it's work and his slide was ready. With nervous hands, Rudy pulled Jaime's medical records and took out her DNA slide for comparison. He looked at both under the huge microscope, then looked again. Within minutes, he had his answer.

--

The search became more frantic as the day went on. More teams were sent in as men began dropping like flies from the extreme heat. Russ, in the central command bus, radioed the grim news to Oscar.

"Still no sign of her."

"Keep looking."

"Oscar, she may have been kidnapped and taken out of the area – out of the state, for all we know."

"Or she may be out there in the sun, unable to get help. _You _are that help!" Oscar thundered.

"I know that, and we aren't giving up, but it's rough out here – really rough! We've already sent six men to the hospital! If she's out there, it's possible that she's not even -"

"Just find her!" Oscar slammed down the phone and turned to Rudy. "Let's go."

--

Jaime rolled over and groaned with pain but no sound came out. She was only vaguely conscious, but the snakes seemed to be coming closer. She reached out her right arm to try and club them and pounded only sand; there was nothing there. _Water...why was there no water? _Silent sobs coursed through her body, but there were no tears...

--

Oscar and Rudy's plane landed at an airstrip just outside Death Valley and a waiting car spirited them quickly to Russ' command center. "Any word yet?" Oscar called out urgently, before he was even inside the bus.

Russ shook his head. "Nothing. It's like she just vanished – and we're down four more men. It's brutal out there."

Rudy stepped forward, his face furrowed with determination. "Get me all the water and equipment you can muster – and a chopper. I'm going out there."

"I'm going with you," Oscar insisted.

"I really can't advise it," Russ told them. There's no air on the choppers, and -"

_"I'm going to find Jaime!" _Rudy strode to the phone and handed it to Russ. "Make the call."

Within ten minutes, they were in the air. They started from the destroyed hide-out, hovering as low as the pilot would go, with the heat baking the chopper from above and below. "If one of them got their hands on her, they'd probably take her deeper into the Valley, so head straight in – find the most isolated spot, and I'll bet that's where they left her." Reluctantly, the pilot did as instructed, heading for the deepest, hottest portion of the desert. Something deep within Rudy's heart told him they were headed in the right direction.

--

The 'snakes' were gone now, replaced by a blinding whiteness whenever Jaime opened her eyes. It was much less painful to leave them closed. Water dominated her every thought. She _had _to find some...if only she could move...

For a moment, she thought she heard a chopper, but it was only a mirage. Exhausted and completely spent, she gave in to the impending darkness.

--

All Rudy and Oscar could see below them was sand – for miles and in every direction. The sun bounced off the crystalline surface and played tricks with their eyes, but Rudy was searching with his heart and soul as much as with the binoculars and it finally paid off.

"Is that a rock?" he asked, unsure at first. The form he was looking at in the sand was motionless. A dead branch? A rock, maybe? "No – it's Jaime! There she is! Take us down, right here!"

Rudy and Oscar were off the chopper before the rotors could stop spinning, and rushed to Jaime's side. She didn't appear to be breathing.

--


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

"She's got a pulse!" Rudy proclaimed in an urgent voice, already beginning mouth-to-mouth. "Get the oxygen and the water – and call the medivac!" Oscar ran back into the chopper while Rudy worked frantically over Jaime's prone body. "C'mon, Honey, breathe!" Rudy pleaded, in between puffs of air. "Don't do this – not now!" It seemed like forever before Jaime finally whimpered softly, taking her own tentative gasp of air. "That's it," the doctor coaxed, smoothing the hair from her forehead. She was so hot! After fitting the oxygen mask to her face, Rudy took the bottle of water from Oscar and began tenderly wetting Jaime's lips and brushing small, cool dabs across her face.

Jaime returned to consciousness in fight mode, but was too weak to hurt anyone. Rudy cradled her in his arms to stop her from flailing about, then eased her carefully into a sitting position as she slowly opened her eyes. "Easy, Honey," he said softly. "Can you take a little water?" He poured a small sip between her parched lips and rubbed her back in a gesture of comfort. "You're okay now; we're here. You'll be just fine -"

Her hazel eyes were wide with confusion, open but not seeing him. Rudy could feel Jaime's heart pounding as he held her close. "Can you hear me?" he asked. She blinked rapidly but didn't respond.

Oscar was the first to notice the bullet wound. "Rudy..." he whispered, glancing at Jaime's side.

Rudy's face blanched, but he continued his soft reassurances and the small sips of water until Jaime finally settled down and leaned into his embrace. Within seconds, she had faded again, going limp in his arms, and Rudy searched the sky anxiously for the rescue chopper. Fortunately, Russ had trusted Rudy's instincts enough to send the medivac to follow them, and minutes later, it was on the ground beside them.

Jaime was lifted onto a gurney and quickly carried aboard. "Stay with us, Honey," Rudy urged, tucking ice packs under her arms and swabbing her face with a cool, damp cloth while one of the medics took her temperature.

"105.6," the medic announced.

Rudy shook his head in dismay. "Heat stroke. Where's the nearest hospital?" he asked the pilot.

"There's one on the Army base, about 20 miles from here."

"That's not close enough!"

"Well, it's the best we can do. I'm flying wide open; I'll get you there as fast as I can."

Rudy bent over the gurney, closer to Jaime. "Hang on," he coaxed. Her skin was flushed and very dry, and she was struggling for each ragged breath. Rudy opened the oxygen flow to full strength and readied the necessary tubes and equipment in case Jaime stopped breathing again. The medic finished with the IV line and stepped away to allow Rudy fuller access. Jaime's pulse was racing at an alarming rate and after giving the cool water and ice several more minutes to work, Rudy took her temperature again. "105.9," he said grimly, his eyes betraying the gravity of the situation. He tucked another ice bag under Jaime's neck and one at the small of her back.

Satisfied that the medics were doing all they could to cool her down, Rudy concentrated now on the bullet wound. It was already turning an angry reddish-purple color. He irrigated it lightly with tepid water, removing as much sand as he could, swabbed it with antiseptic and covered it with gauze then turned his attention to her leg. "Her power pack is intact," he told Oscar, "but the tracking chip is gone. No wonder we couldn't get a reading."

Oscar, in the seat next to the pilot, could only watch Rudy and the medics with mute horror. Rudy didn't know it, but Oscar had seen him at the microscope while he compared the slides. There hadn't been time to ask about the results and Oscar hadn't wanted to press the issue. Whether it was a doctor's instinct that had led him straight to Jaime or something more, Rudy would talk about it when he was ready – or not, but the choice had to be his. Still, Oscar knew he couldn't begin to imagine the heartache and grief the doctor was enduring now, whatever it was that the test had told him.

--


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

The flight to the Base Hospital was fast, but unbearably long for the occupants of the Medivac. When they arrived, Steve was waiting on the tarmac, pacing tensely back and forth and staring at the sky. He got only the briefest look at Jaime as the medics rushed her gurney into the hospital with Rudy close behind. Oscar strode slowly from the chopper, shook Steve's hand and then embraced him.

"It's bad...isn't it?" Steve asked, already sensing the answer.

Oscar nodded grimly as they headed inside. "Heat stroke. She...wasn't breathing when we got to her."

"When Russ called me, I flew right out. How'd you find her? There were dozens of teams out there. Even my eye didn't see anything."

"It was Rudy. Something just led him straight to Jaime," Oscar explained.

Steve stared at the closed emergency room doors, wishing he could be on the other side of them, holding Jaime in his arms, comforting her. "Heat stroke can kill..." he said, very softly, watching through the tiny pane of glass as the team struggled to save Jaime. Oscar had no words; with one hand on Steve's shoulder, he stood with him and waited.

Several of the longest hours of their lives passed before Rudy finally emerged. "She's still critical, but she's stable," he announced. "It was way too close; we almost lost her."

Steve shook Rudy's hand and the anguish that passed between them was almost palpable. "Is she awake?" he asked.

"She's comatose. But at least we were able to lower her body temperature a bit – she's hovering at 103, still too high, but much better. We'll keep her in the ER overnight, since they don't have an ICU, and then transfer her to National first thing in the morning." Rudy answered Steve's next question before he could ask it. "I have to go back in now," he said as the team began filing out, "but I'll let you know as soon as you can see her."

Steve and Oscar watched through the now-open door as Rudy returned to Jaime's side. Wearily, he sank into a chair and, his physician's duties fully performed for the moment, simply held her hand. Steve couldn't help noticing a new vibe: as much as he was a dutiful and competent doctor, right now as he hovered close to Jaime, Rudy looked for all the world like a loving, concerned father.

--

By the time Jaime was settled into her bed at National, her fever had dropped to just below 102. Rudy hadn't slept in more than 36 hours, but like Steve he was unable to leave Jaime's side. Steve watched as he tenderly mopped Jaime's forehead with a cool, damp cloth and moistened her dry, parched lips; although he wondered about Rudy's kiss to her forehead, he didn't bring it up.

"Doc, you look exhausted," Steve ventured. "I'm sure the nurses could do that – or I could – so you can rest awhile -"

"I'd rather stay here," Rudy insisted. "Just in case she needs me." His tone, although gentle, left no room for argument. By early evening, Jaime's temperature was 101 and when Oscar returned to check on her condition he found Rudy and Steve still at her bedside. Jaime had begun moving – just slightly – seeming to respond to a gentle touch and the presence of her loved ones.

"She's doing well," Rudy said as the three men met in the hallway to talk. "She's trying to come out of it."

"Is she in pain?" Oscar wondered.

"From the wound in her side, probably," Rudy explained, "but once she's awake I can medicate her for that and make sure she stays comfortable." While the doctor returned to Jaime's side, Steve and Oscar had coffee and watched from their chairs in the hallway as Rudy fussed lovingly over Jaime, kissing her cheek and later her forehead in a very sweet, paternal fashion.

Steve could see that Oscar didn't share his surprise, and finally he had to ask. "Is something going on that I don't know about...?" He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but something had definitely changed.

Oscar smiled vaguely at the heartwarming scene. "I imagine Rudy will tell us, soon enough."

--


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

Steve had no idea about Rudy's possible connection to Jaime, but somehow he sensed that as much as he wanted and needed to be with her, the doctor just might need the same thing a little bit more. He tried to give Rudy that private time without feeling resentful, staying within sight and earshot, just outside the door to Jaime's room. Oscar placed the responsibility for finding Jaime's assailant into the hands of the NSB and returned to National to wait beside his friend.

Finally, Rudy rejoined them. "You can come in if you'd like. Jaime should be waking up any minute now."

Indeed, Jaime was stirring – her head tossing lightly back and forth on the pillow and her eyelids beginning to flutter. When consciousness finally returned, her first reaction was to look around for the 'snakes', but they were truly gone now. In their place, Jaime saw Steve and Rudy, one on each side of her bed, and Oscar standing a few feet away. All three men were grinning broadly at her and she managed a small smile of her own.

"Hi there, Beautiful," Steve said softly.

Rudy moved immediately into doctor mode, checking Jaime's vital signs and taking in every detail. "Welcome back, Honey. How do you feel?"

"My...side...hurts. What happened?" Jaime whispered.

"It was a pretty close call; you were shot, and that bed of sand you were sleeping in didn't help matters any," Rudy told her. "But we got the bullet out and the infection is already starting to heal. You'll be just fine." He wanted to say so much more, but this simply wasn't the time. "I'll give you something for the pain now." He and Steve each held one of Jaime's hands until the medicine took effect and she drifted off into a deep, healing sleep.

--

The following morning, while Jaime was in the capable hands of the lab techs for further testing, Rudy sat down with Steve in Jaime's hospital room. He explained about having known Jaime's mother many years earlier, exactly nine months before Jaime was born.

"Anne wasn't cheating on James when she met me," he said firmly. "They'd agreed to spend some time apart and were both seeing others, so..."

Steve was speechless at first, then gradually found his voice. "Does Jaime know yet? Have you run a test...?

"No, I only put the pieces together the morning Jaime went missing. And yes, I ran a test that day. I had to know."

"And...?" Steve prompted.

"James will always be her Dad – he raised her. Beyond that, I don't think it's fair to say anything one way or the other until I talk to Jaime...and that needs to wait until she's stronger."

Steve nodded, agreeing with what had been said and fully understanding what hadn't.

--

Two weeks later, her leg newly repaired and her strength having returned, Jaime took her first tentative but very eager steps on Steve's arm while Rudy cheered her on. After helping Jaime back into her bed, Steve kissed her then glanced at Rudy, saw the look on his face and the quick indicative nod and took his cue to leave. It was time. Once again, Steve waited anxiously in the hall with Oscar at his side, occasionally glanced through the glass of the closed door. He witnessed the tears that welled in Jaime's eyes and the gentle way Rudy embraced her in a long, comforting hug. Without needing any further explanation, Steve's heart knew the truth.

His intuition was confirmed when the door opened and Jaime walked out to join them, this time with a beaming Rudy supporting her. Both of their faces glowed with newly-discovered happiness. Jaime had been an orphan for many years, but she was finally able to once again bask in the warmth of a father's love.

END


End file.
